Walking With Him

As Nancy Kerrigan, one of the U.S. leading figure skaters, took part in the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in 1994, she was stabbed in the knee unexpectedly. At that moment she screamed out, “Why me? Why anybody?” Because of her remarks on the incident, she received considerable attention from the sports world.

In the Old Testament Job was described as blameless,upright, fearing God and shunning evil (Job 1:1). He was even praying over his children every day. “Job would sacrifice a burnt offering for each of his children, ‘Perhaps my children have sinned and cursed God in their hearts.’ This was Job’s regular custom,” (1:5). What a just man we could see from his heart and behavior. One day horrible things happened to his family and even to him later — his children died, his property was gone, and he himself suffered ugly diseases. Job nevertheless did not curse God and said, “The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised,” (1:21) In all the terrible things, he didn’t sin against God  in what he said.

Why do bad things happen to good people? “Why me, not someone else?” Job didn’t ask God why he suffered considerably, nor did God gave him a “proper reply”. We tend to keep the “why me” mentality when things come against our way or we suffer unexpected afflictions. We can’t answer all of life questions. We don’t know why things happened, but we need learn how to cope with them.

Life is a “how-to” question, not a “why” question mark.